Acts Of Civil Disobedience In The 1960's

Protests are a way that many citizens have historically exercised their right to freedom of speech and as to voice their opinions on current matters in the U.S. as well as other nations. Protests help the uninformed get informed on specific issues, and try to persuade fellow citizens. What were some of the effective aspects of the protests that were portrayed in “The Matrix”, “Battle in Seattle” as well as those in “The Letter from Birmingham Jail”? What were the downfalls? An effective protest is one where an advocated idea gets across to the intended audience. Peaceful protests tend to have a better outcome than those that lead to violence.

It is imperative to understand that the United States of America was born through acts of civil disobedience. And because American freedoms are constantly in danger of being encroached on, it is also important that citizens are aware of the worth that civil disobedience can possess. Civil disobedience is when a person or people refuse to obey a demand or restriction by the state that conflicts with higher law and conscience. The act requires that the disobedient one accept whatever may be the consequence of refusing, whether it be imprisonment, moral condemnation, fines, even perhaps death. It should be done when one’s spiritual searching and sense of rightness permit no other response. (Day 65: Disobedient Friends – Quakers and Civil Disobedience) There have been many instances of civil disobedience throughout American history which have had a powerful influence on the legal system and society as a whole.

Peaceful protest leads to both positive and negative impacts on a free society. The main issue of the society isn't just people making bold moves like these, it has to do with people being able to accept them and not deal with it in a violent way, thinking that, that is acceptable and going to solve anything, when it really make it

The human race doesn’t take injustice lying down. Over the past hundred years, there has been many examples of people taking a stand for their own rights and freedoms through acts of civil disobedience, defined as “the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest”. While a quick glance at today’s society does show a much more accepting and proper view of people of every race, religion and sexuality, our world does not come without its injustices. I believe that these major injustices keep civil disobedience extremely relevant in our current, modern world.

Civil Disobedience is remarkably effective without the violence that many had thought necessary. Several famous examples include the Salt March of Mahatma Gandhi, the Civil Rights movement of Martin Luther King Jr., and even the sit-ins of the factory workers during the industrial revolution. Although, many still argue that civil

America was founded on a principle of civil disobedience. With the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Founding Fathers set forth a powerful precedent. The Declaration said in part, that when institutions of government becomes destructive or abusive of unalienable rights, it is the right of the people to alter it or to abolish it. The history of our nation tells us that civil disobedience is a civic responsibility, and in the alleged words of Thomas Jefferson, “Dissent is the highest form of patriotism”. From the Boston Tea Party to the Stonewall Riots, the United States Constitution and advances in racial, social, and gender equality support the idea that peaceful resistance positively contributes to a freer society, and a more equitable America.

As more people are exposed to the arguments of these protesters, pressure mounds onto the government to see the problem and respond to it. In fact, in the Letter from Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. stated that “not … a single gain in civil rights [was made] without determined legal and nonviolent pressure.” Additionally, these individuals are not negatively affecting society because they express the utmost respect for the law and advocate for change peacefully while fully accepting the consequences of their actions. They risk enduring denunciation by the media and being labeled as radicals by others. King describes the process of a nonviolent campaign in his Letter from Birmingham Jail: “collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exist; negotiation; self-purification; and direct action.” The self-purification aspect of the nonviolent campaign emphasized an acceptance of the consequences that come with breaking the law such as “[accepting] blows without retaliating” and “[enduring] the ordeals of jail.” The right to peaceful protest respectfully allows these individuals to express their concerns and influence other people with their ideas.

Take the Nat Turner revolt in 1831, for example. It became the largest slave uprising in the history of the south. In the revolt, Nat Turner, a black preacher, and his small slave army mercilessly killed 60 people (mostly women and children) in Virginia (United States History: Heritage of Freedom). And instead of helping to end slavery, this revolt and similar ones gave southerners a reason to defend it. Now, look at the "underground railroad" founded by Harriet Tubman, which was in the same time frame as the Nat Turner revolt. After escaping herself, Harriet helped about 300 slaves to freedom. The underground railroad is still known today for what it accomplished. Everyone involved with the underground railroad hated slavery and everything it stood for, but instead of taking up knives and torches, these brave people put their effort into something that would truly make a difference. Violent protesting is almost always fueled by hate and anger; peaceful resistance is usually fueled by a desire for

Civil disobedience is possibly the most influential form of protest in order to change of laws. Throughout our nation's history there have been multiple examples where the people would disobey the regular norms of society to force a change in law. Even when we started off as colonist, the people refused to pay unjust taxes on British imported goods just so Great Britain could pay for their costs on the Seven Years' War. The people or the colonist, as I should say, thought it was unfair for the them be taxed as they had no representation in England to represent the people. Another peaceful protest would be the sit-ins at Woolworth. At this event, young African Americans went to a diner and sat at the front counter. This would never happen because

From the time we are children and throughout the duration of our lives, we are told to abide by certain sets of rules. In most situations this is a perfectly acceptable expectation; speed limits, remaining quiet in libraries, and waiting until the age of twenty-one to drink are all reasonable things to ask of people. After all, these rules and laws are put in place to ensure a peaceful and safe society. However, when these rules begin to infringe upon the rights of certain groups, some citizens turn to civil disobedience as a form of protest. While some may argue that civil disobedience is nothing more than a violation of the law, it has also proven to have a positive impact on society, in more ways than one. Used by Mahatma Gandhi and Martin

Today, civility is seriously lacking when it comes to lawful disobedience. Civil disobedience can be expressed in several ways. Normally, disobedience is expressed in the form of a protest or a march. For example, in 1963 the Birmingham Campaign occurred and became a pivotal landmark for the Civil Rights Movement. The demonstrators apart of this march, many of which were teenagers and young adults, expressed their feelings toward Jim Crowe Laws and segregation in a civil march headed toward downtown Birmingham, Alabama. The Civil Rights Movement was a form of civil disobedience which had a very serious and positive impact on this

One of the many necessities in establishing a free society is granting the people within it the right to change how they live. If citizens of a free society declare a law unfit for their lifestyle, they should not be denied the right to demand the legal means for that change be provided, nor should the right to advocate that change be denied. Though civil disobedience is not legally supported, it positively affects a free society because it is an earnest, often respectful, and—most importantly—nonviolent expression of discontent with the law. Peaceful resistance shows effectiveness in its promise for the future of a society that often outweighs the consequences of the short term.

Civil disobedience is a crucial act of political participation and is the basis on which our nation was founded upon. Historically, our country started as a protest on the unfair acts and enforcement of various laws onto the people of the colonies from the government of Great Britain. From the ashes of a war based on the headline of “no taxation without representation” our country was born with a heart of rebellion and a strong need for representation in all ways. Although created in a violent way, the United States has strived to appease all citizens whose issues are presented in a nonviolent way, where they are protected under the Bill of Rights in the Constitution. Peaceful protesting and civil disobedience toward a law or policy is critical to a healthy and lively democracy and free society that we strive to achieve.

Civil disobedience isn’t uncommon in America, but the modern idea of civil disobedience has become flawed and distorted from its original intent. Currently, there are thousands of causes and ideals that are spastically flung around and just as soon forgotten. This is because the guise of civil disobedience is often abused by people simply to attract publicity. These methods of claimed civil disobedience often do little to nothing in working towards the goal that they claim to stand for, or their intensions are vague and unclear. For example, in the news, the most popular recent controversial example of civil disobedience is the kneeling during the national anthem before a football game. At its manifestation, this movement was intended to protest the inequalities in the treatment of races by the police especially in Chicago. This effectively accomplished nothing. It raised awareness but the majority of intelligent civilians were already aware of the inequalities. The flaw of this example is that the form of disobedience

Peaceful Resistance no matter what way you look at it, it's still going against someone whether it involves words or actions, resistance still causes more conflict. The last 5 years we have had people say they want change through these “peaceful protest” but these peaceful protests have done nothing but turn to violent riots were theirs damage to vehicles, business families rely on destroyed, bystanders hurt, officers killed and our country torn apart. Back when Martian Luther King Jr was around and he had his Peaceful Resistance or rallies for equality, they were peaceful and brought our country together with something that needed to be changed, but the protest we’ve had the last 5 years… he would be ashamed of. Peaceful Resistance to laws does negatively impact our free society in America.